DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Josh Gordon Reinstated Part II

Yes, he was much deeper into drugs and the thug life than I'm sure most people imagined. He has a long, hard row to hoe. Odds are against him. He will likely fail. There is the slim chance that a hundred million dollar-plus pay day and the desire to see what he can achieve are enough incentive and motivation to keep him sober for 8-10 years. It's clear his manager sees dollar signs.

Also, the story was tinged with the writer's bias, his "treatment and inconvenience" (which he felt necessary to spell out) colored it toward a negative conclusion.

I would like to comment on that article, but I am sick of being scolded for my opinions on Gordon. And I don't think it is me who is beating the dead horse.

I hope he balls out over the last 5 games of the season, stays clean, and we trade him for value.

As long as he isn’t doing anything now and is finally clean then whatever.

People have done way worse that are currently in the league.

I hope the kid has finally turned the corner and straightened his life out for his sake and for his kids sake. BUT I wouldn't bet 10 bucks that he can remain sober for the next 10 years.

This articles very scary ... like u .. i hope for his sake he can do it ..

This article makes his motivation for staying on the straight and narrow very very questionable ...

Its hard enough and this article would lead u to believe hes not doing it for the right reasons .. hope thats not the case but one has to wonder ..

It also tells us a lot about the people “helping” him ... Johnson sounds like a greedy blood sucker ...

Not the type of influences u want in your sober life ...

GOOD LUCK JOSH ...

This board has plenty of horse beaters already.

They seem to be looking for more dead horses . .. .

Go, Browns!

Any trade of Gordon will be conditional upon his staying clean for a length of time. If we are willing to take that chance in a trade, we should be willing to take that chance in keeping him. JMO

I'd say keep him and see what we have but we should draft a WR high in the draft. By high I mean with 1 of our 2nd round picks.

Yeah, that article is... eye-opening. I vaguely remember people on here painting a very thuggish picture of Gordon and getting ridiculed for it. Turns out it was even worse than even they thought. Crazy...

I'll point out the fact that it does mean something that he came out with all of this. It would be one thing to "disclose" stuff that we already knew, but wasn't officially confirmed (sold some weed in college, tested positive all over the place for weed and other drugs). We should be fair and point out the positive when it's there.

But man... that's a big corner he's going to have to turn.

Great if Gordon works out but you dont plan on him being here on any given Sunday. You dont treat him as a #1, you dont treat him as a #2. You go ahead and attack the position as if he doesnt exist.

As for the article, he is a thug, should be in jail and the only thing keeping from being the next Aaron Hernadez is time and probably luck. I hope he gets it together and can contribute to not just the browns but to society in general but i fully expect him to be receiving a lifetime ban and then to be on 30 for 30 espn special on how Gordon was enabled and why he shot the family in a failed driveby.

What a dumb statement.

After reading that article, maybe he already did.

"he says he would be caught in fights every weekend where there'd be a "flurry of bullets," including once when he was struck in the left arm. He never shot to kill, but often had to shoot as a means of "getting out, to cause some type of hestitation so he could keep moving."

yea... no idea why he would think that...

Joe Thomas: It'll 'be tough' for Josh Gordon to stay sober and 'don't force' him the ball

BEREA, Ohio -- Browns left tackle Joe Thomas has lived through the past six tumultuous seasons with (and without) Josh Gordon and knows it won't be easy for the receiver to stay sober in an NFL locker room.

He watched Gordon party with Johnny Manziel in 2014 and witnessed the two of them jeopardize their careers together, including a suspension for the 2014 season finale.

He's watched Gordon come back from multiple suspensions and slip right back into his partying lifestyle, including after his 10-game suspension in 2014. It was the dark period of the Browns' Juvenile J's: Josh, Johnny and Justin Gilbert, and Thomas had no use for any of their shenanigans.

He also watched the Browns force-feed Gordon the ball in 2014, which ruined the end of hometown quarterback Brian Hoyer's promising run here. After a 6-4 start, the Browns won only once -- the first game -- upon Gordon's return, losing their last five. Hoyer walked in free agency, and the Browns are 4-44 since.

So it's understandable that Thomas is only cautiously optimistic about Gordon's return Sunday against the Chargers.

"You're definitely seeing the commitment from Josh right now in the facility, but I do agree that he's going to have some bumps in the road coming back," Thomas said Wednesday on The Ken Carman Show with Anthony Lima on 92.3 The Fan. "I'm not an addiction specialist. I don't really understand his side of things too well, but I know that when you're in a controlled environment, when you're around other addicts and you're in those meetings, and those programs, it's powerful to be around those people because it's uplifting and they're fighting the same fight you are.''

Thomas cautioned that the tough part comes now, when Gordon is out of rehab and back with his old friends. He's seen the Browns counting on Gordon to come in and be the savior only for him to use substances again.

"You take that player that has this big history of addiction and you put him in a locker room with a bunch of 20-year-olds and early 30-year-olds, let's be honest, pro football players like to party, they like to go out and drink and that's powerful and it's difficult and it's going to take a lot of self-control and discipline on Josh's part to not slide back into that lifestyle," said Thomas.

"I mean, they're going to be testing him every single week for everything and one more slip-up and it might be over, so it's going to be tough for him because he wants to be able to relate to those players ... become one of the guys but he's got to be careful not to ever cross that line."

Gordon, who's scheduled to meet with the media today, revealed an extensive criminal history in an interview in October with Sports Illustrated, which was published on Tuesday.

The claims in the article of armed robbery, grand theft auto counterfeiting, selling drugs and more had Hue Jackson admitting that "antennas are up" in the organization.

Thomas is also concerned about expectations being too high, which is what happened when he returned in 2014. The Browns targeted him 16 times in his first game back, and he caught eight of Hoyer's passes for 120 yards. But Hoyer threw three picks that day and the Browns won on a last-second field goal.

Hoyer was distraught after the game. He threw eight picks in his final four games, many on balls to Gordon. The Browns lost their last five and have never been the same since.

"He wasn't ready," Thomas said Wednesday about that Gordon comeback. "He didn't know the route concepts, he didn't understand where he fit in the offense and we almost lost the game, I'm not going to say because of him, but I think there were two or three picks where the ball was thrown in the right spot but Josh didn't make the right read."

Thomas, who says DeShone Kizer has "played lights out'' the past two weeks, doesn't want to see the same thing happen to the rookie QB.

"For Josh, it's important that he's out there, but that we don't force the ball to him ... because that can backfire.

"I definitely think he can be a big influence, but the biggest impact he can have is the fear defenses have when you've got a guy that's 6-3 1/2, 230 that's running a 4.3 right past you. ... So that can open up the rest of the offense, but I don't want to see them force the ball to him 15 times."

There are two major differences between now and 2014: Gordon says he's sober and Kizer isn't facing the same organizational pressure that Hoyer was. The organization had Hoyer looking over his shoulder for the larger-than-life Manziel, and the pressure seemed to get to him down the stretch.

Kizer, calloused by multiple benchings this season, has grown mentally tougher with each passing week, and says he won't succumb to the pressure to get Gordon the ball.

"Every play has a read,'' he said. "It's on me to make sure that I'm reading it correctly. ... If it's Josh or if it's Corey (Coleman), it does not necessarily really matter as long as the ball is in the right place. I think we're in a position now where we have a bunch of playmakers all over the field. We have guys out there all over the place who we will be able to get the ball to."

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2017/11/joe_thomas_itll_be_tough_for_j.html

Good article. I think Joe speaks the truth here.

I don't think Kizer will force it bc he knows turnovers will have him sitting on the sideline.

Kizer is very level headed. For 21, thats amazing. The 'every play has a read' quote is what I like to hear.

J/C

https://twitter.com/MaryKayCabot/status/936277327654408192

Mary Kay posted a video of this slick Josh Gordon one-hander from practice and my heart fluttered a little.

if he does that in a game...man oh man we might actually win a few.

Joe speaks the truth and people are deluding themselves once again.

Love it, and we know that he's capable of doing it in games.

JT is right, however, we can't force him the ball. Let him return to rhythm and give him some simpler routes to key in on for now.

Luckily, we're in a much better positon to spread the ball. With Coleman returned, and Duke Johnson seeing his workload increasing, they'll see their fair share of targets.

I think Kizer can trust on Gordon to make those plays, but not to do so on every down. It sounds like Kizer understands that.

I think Mary Kay framed Joe's words to make them sound harsher than they were.

What Joe said is true, though.

I want to see at least one deep shot to Gordon against the Chargers. He's got a huge height advantage over the Chargers corners, and he's incredible on deep contested catches.

That will make me happy. They so much as hint at a cover 1 look and that thing better soar 50 yards to 12.

If that happens Sunday, it would be our best game in 2 years, lol.

He WAS great....three years later, could be....time will tell...hope he does well and stays clean.....GO Browns!!!!

Agree with most of your post, Gordon sure had/has problems...I've called him terrible names/ the meathead moniker seems appropriate, so does thug.....sad the press now will hound him for thug/criminal stuff done a decade ago....so it is in modern life....he's got more than a mountain to climb.....hope he makes it. GO Browns!!!!

Is the press hounding him or he and his advisor seeking out the press?

j/c


I'm starting to lean more towards vers here. I hope Gordon does great, but I'm not getting my hopes up. I feel he's already been a distraction.

You don't say all the things he said to Sports Illustrated if you're not seeking media attention. You don't even agree to some huge interview if you're not seeking media attention.

But you know, poor Josh.

I hope he does great, too. I hope he stays clean. It's just hard for me to trust him.

I'm sure the scrutiny is tremendous pressure for him. Everyday, a new test. Everyday sober, a day better, a day easier. Day by day Fingers crossed. Go Browns!

He looks loose and seems to be having a good time. He's good at what he does. I hope he loves it enough to want to continue doing it. That's the only thing that can save him, IMO.

I wish him the best ... in life and on the football field.

I think you have to 'trust' him - it kind of comes with his status/situation. Having said that - I think it's reasonable to either expect or be prepared for that trust to be broken based on previous behavior .... I'm hoping for the best but that is far from me expecting the best. Show me for a couple years and I might change that perspective.

I will let actions speak !

Ditto, but the good news is we don't have to.
He's back and he's going to be out there. He either does well and we all love him, or he screws the pooch again and he is gone forever and we're right where we've been for the last two years without him - looking for a #1 WR, which we will probably draft in April, anyway.... which guards against him screwing up, and adds/multiplies his effect if he keeps on the Good Path.

We don't lose here.

JMHO, they are hounding the meathead about his saying he wasn't sorry of anything he'd done....he misspoke or is stating he can't change anything about his past....plus his manager wants to make money....COMPLETELY unrelated to football---anyone who says he wasn't a scum bag in his youth is lying.....he's lucky he isn't dead....to football, hope he stays clean and plays great for us....we deserve it for sticking with him.....GO Browns!!!!

If, josh should have been activated today. Has anyone heard who was displaced??

Josh Gordon is officially activated and Hue Jackson announces that he will start against the Chargers
https://scout.com/nfl/browns/Article/Jos...rgers-111462424

Defensive back Justin Currie was released to make room on the roster for Gordon.

Any bets on how many games Gordon plays until he relapses?